Daily Devotional: October 16th

Daily Prayer XVII

Hail, Bacchus, liberator of our captive souls,

Breaking chains that bind, releasing from cyclical tolls.

Thy revelry transcends earthly strife and birth's decree,

Purifier divine, setting our spirits forever free.

In thy ecstatic dance, the soul finds its release,

From the shackles of rebirth, you bring sweet peace.

Thou art the vine, the nectar of divine elation,

Bacchus, our guide to the realm of transformation.

Through the chalice of thy grace, impurities dissolve,

As the soul ascends, in thy mysteries we evolve.

Oh, Bacchus, in thy rapture, our essence refined,

The soul's salvation, in thy presence enshrined.

Daily Meditation

"All the parts of human life, like those of a statue, should be beautiful.”

—Stobaeus

Sentance 126

Everything we do has the opportunity to partake in beauty. Beauty is more than just a good appearance; it is the true reflection of the divine in reality. When we make the parts of our life beautiful, we bring them closer to God. A beautiful home, family, and occupation are worthy of striving for, but a beautiful soul adorned with virtue is even greater.

Monthly Ascesis: Breath and the Pneuma

“In the Western classical tradition, the words for spirit and soul - pneuma, psyche, anima, and spiritus hold profound significance. Interestingly, each of these words also carries the meaning of breath or to breathe. This linguistic connection underscores the belief that breath is the essence of life. In the myth of Prometheus, for instance, it was Minerva’s breath that animated the clay figures of man, giving them life.”

The breath is one of our most powerful tools for spiritual practice and is directly linked to our souls. When we speed up our breathing, our mind speeds up. When we slow it down, our mind slows. Controlling our breath is a leap forward for control of the self and our passions.

“Once you have fixed your breath, you can start to focus on it and use it as an instrument to still the mind. With each breath, there will be a slight pause at the top of the breath and a slight pause at the end of each exhalation. To increase stillness, we will let our minds come to rest in the pause following the exhalation. Breathe out and rest in that moment between breaths. When you feel the need to breathe in again, then do so and come back around to the rest point of the next exhalation.”

-Excerpts from, Ascesis: the Handbook of Platonic Practice

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